Disney's Happily Ever After
by Otaku Takeshi
Summary: The world of Disney is wonderful. But what happens when the darkest villains return and unite together to defeat their enemies once and for all? One thing in mind. Chaos. But that doesn't mean our faithful heroes will just stand there in despair. Though everything seems dark, there is still light out there, somewhere. And they'll fight to find it.
1. Chapter 1: Darkness

Oh hi there. I'm kind of surprised someone is actually listening to me. Well, a stranger. But you seem like the nice type. Unless you're one of those who pretend to be all goody goody then the next thing you know, my hands are tied together with rope and your mouth taped.

But never mind that. Since you're here now, how about I tell you a little story? Give me a chance. But first, my name is Max. As in Eric's dog, Max from The Little Mermaid. Obviously, you all probably don't know me. I'm a huge Disney fan like all of you. Just a normal person. With a Mickey heart.

I had a rough childhood, but something happened. I gained two magical gauntlets which allow me to travel to various Disney movies! Jiminy Cricket gave them to me. That's not all though. I can think of an object from any Disney movie and it'll show up! Pretty cool huh? So I managed through tough situations to befriend the princesses and princes and animals and humans and, well, all of them! I even got to let them all make new friends by connecting portals from one of their worlds to another world. For example, Belle knows Cinderella and Cinderella knows the Beast and- but I didn't really introduce them all to each other yet. I'm still working on that.

Then another thing happened. Something horrible though. Nothing joyful, nothing exciting. Just, horrible. It's- well...I should start from the beginning.

* * *

_I was back in the real world. Reality. I was just chilling and getting ready to go to a party at the Beast's- Ahem, Adam's castle. It wasn't really a huge party. Just a...small...tea party. Don't ask. Mrs. Potts can make some awesome tea. And I bet you would want some too. Don't deny it. I set out and arrived at the entrance along with Jiminy Cricket, and my usual brown vest, brown boots and gauntlets. Plus a dark red cloak. I wore a shirt and pants too for all you logical-be-more-specific people. So I walked towards the gateway with Jiminy on my shoulder..._

It was mid-day, though there were dark clouds covering the sky so everything was dim. I opened the castle doors and peeked inside the dark lobby.

"Does it seem kind of...quiet to you?" I looked to Jiminy who shrugged.

"Beats me. Maybe they took a little nap?" He replied as I closed the doors behind me. "What?"

I was looking at Jiminy with an eyebrow raised up. I don't think Belle would be roaming about the castle when there's a huge library. Unless she already read every single book there. I doubted that though. What I also doubt is Adam just sleeping while he was already turned into a human. Not mention he had Belle. But he did have his princely work. Don't ask me what he does. I have no idea.

I looked around and everything was dark. Abnormally dark. But I could still see. So I kept looking and looking and I was probably straining my eyes by just...looking around.

We searched in the kitchen, the dining room, the ballroom, that other room that I don't know the name of and nothing. Absolutely nothing. I groaned in frustration.

"Isn't anyone here?!" Jiminy yelled.

"Helloooo?"

No one answered. It was an exact replication of what I recall the Beast's castle to be when Belle's father first entered the gloomy castle. Everything was dark and eerie, _exactly_ how it was before the transformation of the castle inhabitors into their normal, human, (and dog) form.

"Wait," I said, with a finger to my mouth. "You hear that?"

At that moment, I heard clunking noises. Echoing in the corridors. It seemed familiar, but I just can't make it out.

"What _is _that?" Jiminy asked in a curious, but suspicious tone.

The clunking became louder and louder, and yes, it kind of freaked me out. Finally, the clunking stopped, and I made out the sound to be at my right side.

"What is….?" Jiminy whispered as I walked closer to the wall and peek around the corner.

"Max!"

"Whoa!" Jiminy and I jumped.

"Wait.." I saw nothing in front of me. So I looked down slowly, and there they were. Mrs. Potts was in her cursed form. And so was Lumiere, Cogsworth and Chip (who shouted my name).

I exchanged looks with Jiminy, and I kneeled.

"Aren't you all supposed to be….human?" Jiminy said with a hand out.

Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts exchanged looks. Their faces were filled with despair. What happened to their joyful expressions on account of the tea party?

"Well..." Mrs. Potts said. "We're not exactly sure what happened. Three days ago, we were still human. But on that one stormy night, there was a flash of lightning, then white colored sparks came down from the sky."

"I was the first to see it!" Chip said in his usual excited, but not this time not happy, voice.

"We all looked out the window, and with another flash of lightning, and a faint sound of voice that sounded very menacing, we were...objects again." Mrs. Potts said with a frown on her face.

"Just like that?" I asked.

"Just like that." Lumiere turned his head to the floor in depression.

"That's….that's awful" Jiminy said sadly.

"Yes. We were all not sure _why_ it happened." Cogsworth said.

I looked around, stood up and thought. Or so I did. I wasn't sure _what_ to think. I mean, to finally get what you want after ten years! Then losing it all suddenly. Without even having it for the same amount of time you waited for it. It's like saving up money for that twinkie, then eating, then losing it all suddenly. It doesn't seem as bad when I restate it like that but you understand…right? It would be like me. Having this incredible power to go into Disney worlds, then all of a sudden, someone or something takes it away from me. It's horrible.

"What about Belle?" Jiminy said what I was supposed to.

"The mademoiselle is still human." Lumiere said. "But...she is not in a good mood. The master..."

"What about the master? What about Adam?" I asked in a worried voice.

Everyone paused, in thought of the horrible idea. Jiminy and I waited, and saw their heads turn to the ground.

"Well? What? What happened?" Jiminy spoke anxiously.

"He doesn't remember Belle." Chip finally said after moments.

"But, the Beast can still get to _know_ Belle, right?" I questioned.

Lumiere shook his head. "The master is worse than before. He won't want to get to know anyone anymore. And if we tell him what happened, he won't listen. Because it won't change a thing."

"Jiminy, is this possible?" I questioned.

"Well.." He mumbled. "Anything is possible."

I sighed. Of course anything's possible. This all happened to me. So why wouldn't something be _im_possible?

"But there's a worst part of the worst part." said Chip.

"What _is _the worst part of the worst part, then?" I shouldn't even ask.

"We are permanently cursed." Mrs. Potts answered. "There is no rose, or anything that gives us more time."

"The master only knows that he _was_ human. So nothing can change his personality now, with the knowledge that this curse is permanent." Cogsworth explained.

"Unless something strong enough can change the master's mind." Lumiere said.

"It is horrible when you realize the thing you wanted and _had_…" Jiminy stated. "Is forever gone, and there's no hope that you will have it anymore."

"I guess you could call him a 'master mind'. Get it?" I added and noticed the looks on their faces. I shouldn't have said that.

"Um. Well...isn't Belle the strongest...idea?" I continued.

They all shook their heads.

"Oh come on!" I yelled, frustrated.

"It seems like magic is doing it all. It's doing all the worst things to keep anything good from happening." Mrs. Potts announced sadly.

At that sentence, I had no more questions. Jiminy had no more questions. We were both struck, and not star struck. More like, ouch-that-lightning-hit-me-hard-in-the-butt struck. I won't go into detail about the butt pain part but yeah…it wasn't good. But the last thing that I would want is someone I cared for to be in despair, the kind of despair I went through. Except this time, for them it's forever. But there can always be 'light' in complete darkness. That's why eyes adjust to the dark, for you to see and discover that everything is actually alright.

I straightened my posture and said with a confident voice.

"Where's Belle?"

* * *

A/N: Oh look, a rewritten story, for the minority that knows this story before. But yeah.

For the record, I officially know that Adam is **not** the Beast's real name. But for the sake of addressing him, I'll still use this name for his human qualities.

Max is one of my original characters, of which you can see his background story (and more) on my profile. It's not in detail detail, but it has the facts. I'll try to work on this more often than before. But I'm sorry if I don't update as quickly as you people want to (if you do)

How am I doing? Please review!

And thanks for reading!

*Disney characters belong to Disney, this Max and idea belongs to me.


	2. Chapter 2: Increasing Bitterness

A/N: This is an important message to the readers who will still read this story. It is **HIGHLY **recommended that you read on my profile about Max (if you haven't already). Things will happen that will not make sense if you don't take a glance at it. If you want the most important thing, just look for the underlined part next to "Regular Costuming" near the top of my profile.

Read on!

* * *

"Where's Belle?" I announced firm and proud.

"Belle is still just outside of the broken, rubble covered room where the master is, hopelessly trying to get his mind around." Mrs. Potts replied.

"Wait, you mean where Forte, the evil organ was?"

They nodded.

"Oh dear," Jiminy put a hand on his face. "Hey Max, I'll just watch this situation from elsewhere. I'll be watching everything you see so don't hesitate to ask. I'll answer back." And with a poof and a nod of me, Jiminy disappeared.

I sighed. I hoped that this visit would be fun filled and happy, but it was only depressing. _Belle…Mrs. Potts…Chip..everyone._ I thought. I seriously regretted at that time that I should've visited sooner. After a moment, I continued.

"I know," I sighed once more. "It looks bad. But think on the bright side. We thought that the last petal on the rose would fall before Belle proclaimed her love for Adam. But it didn't. There's a way. We just need to chase after it. Now wait here, and whatever happens, don't, _never_ lose hope."

I gave a small smirk at them all before running to the messed up, what-used-to-be- organ's room. Their faces were still sullen, but I saw a little, tiny bit of light from within.

* * *

I ran to the room as fast as I can, without tripping over anything in the dim castle. I passed the same gargoyles that used to be creepy, but not as creepy as gargoyles, cherubs.

"Adam, please open up!"

_A familiar voice._ I thought. I peeked around the wall and saw Belle, outside of the master's room, in the same usual blue dress and white apron, and her hair tied with a blue ribbon. I walked towards her and stopped a few feet behind her.

"Please!" Belle knocked on the door. But the _Beast_, didn't answer.

I could imagine him, sitting, watching the fireplace, with a dark look on his face. But also having a sad, sorrowful expression deep within.

I shrugged it off and walked closer to the door. "You're not knocking hard enough." I pounded on the door for a few seconds. "Hey! You walking carpet, answer us!"

The room remained quiet. _You giant, fluffy, huggable, fluff pillow with a cape-_

"Max! I- I didn't see you coming." Belle stammered and interrupted my thoughts. "I mean, not that I'm not happy to see you, it's just-"

"Surprising." I said. "I'm sorry I haven't come sooner. It's just that I don't plan...much."

"That's perfectly fine. I'm pretty sure you were busy." Belle said.

"...yeah." I cleared my throat. "I mean, I _was_ busy, and kind of...lazy. And I _do_ plan sometimes. Probably only for pizza-" I mumbled.

"So," Belle pushes a strand of her hair back. "You...I guess you know what happened."

I stopped mumbling quietly and turned to her. "Well, ye- yeah."

Neither of us knew what to say, with all this happening suddenly. I scratched my head, she looked around without a reason. I finally took away the moment of silence.

"I- uh…I'm guessing you've never seen Adam for the past few..hours."

She nodded hesitantly.

What should I do? I can't-

"Hey Max!" Jiminy reappeared on my shoulder. "Afternoon, madam." He tipped his hat to Belle, who smiled back, acknowledging his presence.

"What do you need?" I asked.

He then whispered into my ear and I actually listened, since this wasn't math class or anything. I saw Belle's eyes gleaming at the corner of my eye, hoping for a solution. My face brightened once I heard Jiminy's idea, who then tipped his hat again to Belle and poofed, again.

"Jiminy Cricket, you're a genius!" I exclaimed.

"What? What is it, Max?"

I took her hand. "We have a way." I gave her a hopeful smile and lead her to the West Wing, where the rose used to rest.

Belle wasn't exactly sure what was happening, but whatever can work, gives a little brightness inside. They went inside and stood near the table where the Rose was supposed to be.

"Max, what are you...?"

"Wait!" I extended his left arm, and the famous "D" sign in "Disney" glowed gold.

My silver gauntlet shot out a gold stream that sparked the room and the magic mirror the Beast once had, appeared bit by bit and the glowing from the gauntlet and mirror stopped, right into my hands.

"Max! This is-"

"Wonderful! Great!" I grinned at her. "It's not the permanent solution to this problem, but at least we're off to a good start. Now, Belle, this is a truly magical mirror. It shows you-"

"Max, I know what it does." She teased at me.

"Heh. Anyway, show us the Beast."

"Adam." Belle corrected me.

"Show us, Adam then." I glanced at her then back to the mirror.

"Please." Belle added eagerly.

"I don't even know why you-"

The mirror glowed green brightly in our eyes, and in the mirror showed a Beast, staring into the fireplace, just as I thought. At that time, I thought, _darn, I'm good at this hypothesizing thing._

"Man, is it about time they'd shut up!" A voice said in the mirror.

"They're just servants. What more can you expect from them?" The Beast said.

"I dunno, decency to be quiet?" The same voice said.

Belle and I looked at each other questioningly, then turned back to the mirror.

"Very funny." The Beast replied gruffly.

"Hey bud, I'm just trying to help you. Since that old organ is already destroyed."

The Beast stood and started pacing around. There was no sign of anyone else that was the other voice. I wished I could've just stepped inside the mirror and call an end to this.

"Forte? He was always useless." The Beast said.

"Uh huh. The only thing you liked about him was his 'music'."

"At least he _had_ music. Unlike you who keeps on complaining and getting all red hot!" The Beast replied menacingly.

"Red hot?" I said curiously.

"I think that's enough of your, 'nosing around'." Another voice said, but this time, different and sounded loudly like it was near Belle and I. So that kind of freaked me out. It was a familiar voice.

The magic mirror in my hand started glowing red and feeling hot in my hand. I dropped the mirror to the floor and held my hand. Belle and I stepped away from the mirror. The mirror glowed red even brighter and exploded, leaving nothing but dust. Before me or Belle could say anything, the deep voice continued.

"Hello, Belle."

Belle and I turned to look to this intruder. It was something that either of us did _not_ want to see. It was frightening, and all I can do is stare at his ugly face.

In our eyes, standing near the doors was Gaston.

* * *

A/N: I hope this was suspenseful. And if you know who that "red hot" voice was, please keep it to yourselves and bake yourself a cookie or something. :D

If you're confused about the gauntlets, then read my profile please.  
To keep you psyched, some Kingdom Hearts references will be used.

How am I doing? Please comment!

Thanks for reading!

*Disclaimer: I do not own Disney, but I own this idea, and Max.


	3. Chapter 3: Escape the Shadows

"Gaston!" Belle shouted in shock.

" What the heck are you doing here, Gaston?" I asked with clinched teeth. "Didn't you like, fall off a castle all by yourself?"

"Save your breath." Gaston scoffed (with his ugly face). "So Belle, are you surprised, happy, or just speechless?"

I turned my head to Belle, who still had an astonished face (for the time), turned into a grim face.

"None of the above." She replied darkly, which was different from the normal Belle I usually saw. I was kind of scared.

"She gave her opinion, Gaston. Not like an airhead would understand different opinions and accept it." I retorted at him.

"Why you little-"

"_What_ do you want, Gaston?" Belle interfered.

Gaston paused and took interest. He stepped slowly towards us. "Oh, nothing much. Just, control of this whole kingdom, and..."

"And…what?" Belle aroused suspicion.

Gaston took one more step and stopped in front of Belle.

"You'll marry me." Gaston said.

"No..." Belle gasped.

"You're _still_ going on about that?" I complained. "I mean, _really?_"

At that moment, I had nothing else on his mind, but I felt like I was forgetting something. Then I realized, and saw that Belle thought the same thing. _The others._

"Wait, how did you get in here?" Belle asked Gaston. "What did you do to the others?"

"Oh, I just walked in here. And about the others… "Gaston said malevolently. "Nothing. I just, made sure they wouldn't interfere with our little _meeting_."

"What did you do?" I glared at him. I thought about throwing a pillow case full of bricks at his face.

Gaston just smiled maliciously. Belle and I couldn't think of what Gaston would do, even to objects. Geez, even I is thought of Gaston dropping Chip from horrendous heights. But that wouldn't stop me.

"Heh…" I muttered.

"What's so funny?" Gaston gave a suspicious face.

"You really expect us to give up this easily?"

Gaston gave an inquired look. I merely gave a mischievous smirk.

"_Run." _The voice of Jiminy echoed in my ear.

I suddenly grabbed Belle's hand and didn't tell her what I planned, since I didn't really have a plan. But she knew me enough to know to trust me, even if I'm all over the place. I pushed aside Gaston and ran out with Belle, hearing fading, threatening shouts behind me.

"Listen, Belle!" I yelled as we went down the main stairs. "I have to get you and the others somewhere safe!"

"But, Max...Look!" Belle pointed at the end of the stairs where a group of little black creatures with antennas were. "What are those?!"

"Heartless!" I frantically looked around for a different path. _Now they got them coming at us?!_ I thought. We went back up the stairs instead of down, where we were supposed to go through the main entrance. But Gaston was there, blocking our path.

_"Max!"_ Jiminy echoed. _"Your gauntlet!"_

_That's right. Why do I keep on forgetting about it?_ I stretched out my left arm and summoned the Shield of Virtue, which appeared- as all objects do – from a gold stream of light, and went to my left arm. "Come on!" I told Belle, who stayed close.

We both went back down the stairs and rushed through the group of Heartless. We were lucky it was just Shadows. Belle and I ran towards the entrance doors but the doors were then flooded by Heartless. A Heartless started attacking my right gauntlet, then left gauntlet, which both sparked a bit. The Shield of Virtue soon disappeared. I whipped my right fist to the Heartless, then the Shadow turned into a black cloud which also disappeared.

I tried using my left gauntlet, but no use. _The Heartless must've messed it up. _"Come on! Not at this time!" I noticed that the group of Heartless Shadows increased, and we were surrounded.

"Enough!" Gaston said when Belle and I were almost completely covered in Shadows. "Now.."

Gaston walked down the stairs as the Heartless separated and made a clear path for Gaston to walk. "Is that really what you want to do, Max? Belle?" The ugly face said to us. "That's not really like you. Aren't you supposed to count _everyone_ in?"

Gaston stepped aside and a cage with Cogsworth, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts and Chip inside was being held by a Heartless.

"Belle!" Chip shouted.

_No._

"Gaston, let them go, please!" Belle pleaded.

"Of course. If you be my queen." Gaston replied.

What really struck me is the persistence Gaston had to take Belle's heart. Usually, I'd respect those kinds of people, who would fight for what they truly think is right. But in this case, I hate it.

"Max, take Belle somewhere safe." A gruff voice suddenly said.

We looked to the top of the stairs.

"Adam." Belle said softly.

"What are you doing here?" Gaston said and stepped towards the Beast. "Aren't you supposed to be in your room like a good Beast?"

"I'm getting tired of these games." The Beast argued.

"Whoa, wait." I intruded. "You were pretending?"

"They would hurt Belle and the others if I didn't." The Beast said. "But it wouldn't matter. I knew it wouldn't change their intentions."

"_They?"_ I heard Jiminy's voice.

"So you've noticed." Gaston said. "I wonder how long it took you to realize that thick skull of yours."

"Not that long."

"So you'd rather suffer in a cell, than be comfortable in your room by the fireplace."

"It would be better than talking to that hot head, Hades." Beast grumbled.

"_That's who the mysterious voice was…"_ Jiminy whispered to me. Yep, that was Hades. Before I was able to continue my thoughts, the conversation went on.

Gaston scoffed. "You're forgetting I have Belle _and _Max right in my hands. Max can go to the trash."

"That's mean." I retorted.

"So why would losing Belle to me be better than talking to Hades?" Gaston said suspiciously.

"Because I never did lose Belle to you." He replied.

"What?" Gaston was dumbfounded.

The Beast looked at me, and I knew what to do. I have to escape with Belle. I gave a knowing nod to him. The Beast then tackled Gaston, and all the Heartless around went and attacked the Beast to protect their commander.

"Go!" The Beast cried out at us.

"Adam!"

"Belle, we have to go!" Max called.

"But, how about..." Belle looked to the cage that is now on the ground.

"Don't worry about us, dear." Mrs. Potts said.

"We'll be fine!" Lumiere hollered out.

"Just fine!" Cogsworth said, though the tone in his voice was a little worried.

"Just don't leave us forever!" Chip shouted to us.

"Of course we won't, Chip." Belle said.

"Go, go, go, go, go, go, go." I said quickly. _Don't worry._ I took a last glance to Chip and a smirk to let him know I won't let anything happen to them.

Belle took another look at the Beast who was able to smile for a moment and we dashed out the door. The Beast took care of Gaston, but there were numerous Heartless, so some helped Gaston, and some went after us.

It was snowing, unlike before when I entered the castle. We both rushed out the castle gates and when I looked back for a moment, the Heartless was still on us.

"Where are we going?" Belle asked as we ran through the forest.

"Max! Use your gauntlet!" I guess you could say Jiminy was scolding me because of his tone of voice. I forgot about the gauntlets before too, and I _just_ used it so yeah, I was kind of ignorant.

"Oh yeah, right, right." I said.

I straightened out my right arm but nothing came out except a little spark. "What?"

We stopped as I pounded on my gauntlet in hopes that it will work before the Heartless catch us.

"Come on, work!" I tried waving my arm a little and saw a spark of gold.

"Max, hurry!" Belle said, looking to the Heartless who was shortening the distance.

"I'm trying! It was that Heartless! It messed with it-"

The "Mickey Ears" glowed gold and a stream shot out and formed a light blue, standing archway.

"Oh, there it is." I grinned at Belle then turned my head behind me to find a Heartless that's in the air about to hit me. "Go, go, go!"

I followed Belle and jumped into the archway just moments before a Heartless could get its claws on me. My face laid flat on grass, and the archway vanished behind us. My right gauntlet sparked once more. I heard Belle groan and stand up.

"Max?"

"What?" My voice was muffled.

"Do you know where we are?"

"No."

"Max, you didn't even look around."

"Uhfemfbua." I didn't really say anything that was a word.

"Max, a princess just asked you a question!" Jiminy reappeared in front of me. I looked at him with an expression that said_ Yes, I did answer it_. "And 'no' is not an answer, considering you should know the answer."

I sighed and finally sat up. In this world, it was night-time. The skies were clear and the moon is out. We were in a forest. "I really don't know where we are. There are lots of forests around the world..s." I stood up and eyed the large tree next to me. "Hold on, I'm gonna get a bird's-eye view. "

Not really a bird's-eye view from the skies, but it seemed right at the time. You know, with trees blocking our view, and not to mention Heartless as well. I climbed up and tried to avoid hurting myself. I got to the top, and realized this was a _large_ tree.

"Do you see anything?" I heard Belle from below.

"Yeah." I looked to the distance, and saw a familiar view.

"Ohh.." Jiminy softly said.

"What is it?"

"Here, see for yourself." I climbed down, lower to the ground and reached out my hand to Belle's. "Careful."

Belle followed me, climbed up the tree, and stepped where I stepped. Finally, we rested on a strong, sturdy, thick branch, and I pointed to the view. "See that?"

I saw Belle's eyes widen a bit at the sight. It was a castle, in the midst of a village, which was also on-I guess you can say- an 'island.'

"To answer your question, princess.." I took a deep breath. "We're in the world of Tangled."

* * *

A/N: Well, there you go. ^_^

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Another thing I have to say is please be patient if you're waiting for updates. I believe in the meantime I will be sorting out what happens in this story (that I believe will be a long story). I have noticed how this plot is actually kind of complicated, in a way. It's not impossible, though, so I'll be doing my best to organize all of this. Because if I didn't, I would be considered a hypocrite, since I do pay attention to anything that might mix up with something in a movie/book/story.

No worries though, I'm still going to be updating. Not like 5 times a week, but you know.

Thanks for reading!

And please review, it's very appreciated and I'd like to hear any comments on anything or suggestions on how to improve.


	4. Chapter 4: Arrival

"It's beautiful." Belle announced in awe, staring at the distant castle. The moon was shining over the kingdom, and the water reflecting the moon, it was a hundred times better.

Jiminy agreed. "It is quite nice, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" After my little moment of dozing off, I clapped my hands. "Well, how about we get some rest? We'll head for the kingdom in the morning; or afternoon, depending on how sleepy we are."

I stepped down, branch after branch, watching my step. Belle followed me cautiously as well. We both landed on soft grass once again.

"You said we're in the world of Tangled?" Belle asked.

"Why, yes." I said bluntly. "Remember how I told you that this gauntlet opens up a gateway to other worlds?" I pointed to my right forearm, and she nodded. "Well, this is one of those other worlds that I _was_ going to take you to some other time, but I guess now is the time."

Belle looked at the sky and all around her. "Interesting...well, I can't wait to meet the others!"

I smiled and nodded. "Yup. Alright then, let's _conjure_ a nice comfortable cottage for us." I gestured to the fairly big land with no trees in front of us.

I cracked my knuckles, stretched out my neck, clenched my left fist and straightened my arm out along with a one sided grin. A few seconds (or minutes, it was quite a long time in my head) later, still, nothing came out. My grin quickly turned into a frown. "Aw, come on, gold stream thingy!" I tapped on my gauntlet.

"Still not working?" I heard Belle's voice behind me.

"Huh…that's weird. It should _always_ work." Jiminy scratched his head. "Some kind of malfunction, perhaps?"

"Probably caused by that Heartless…" I was still tapping on my gauntlet, with a confused face.

"Well," Belle sighed. "I guess we'll just have to camp."

My hand movements stopped, and my eyes lit up. "I'll fetch the firewood!"

* * *

Okay, so if you don't remember, this whole thing already happened, and I'm just telling a bedtime story to you. I can only tell you so much, since I only remember what I've experienced. And who knows what's going on in all the other worlds this very moment when Belle, Jiminy and I are going to sleep, since I'm not there to tell you.

But after all I've already told you, you must be a _little_ sad, right? With the Beast and Gaston taking everyone in the castle as prisoner, and Belle having to leave them, you've got to have some kind of feeling that says "Oh no" somewhere!

So to lighten up the mood a bit and take a little break, I'm going to tell you another little story I have. Isn't that fun?! Nod. I know you're not smiling! I CAN SEE IT IN YOUR EYES.

Anyway, one time, I had this dream where I was stuck in a dark corner, then all of a sudden BAM! There was this little cute tiny bunny in front of me and it was staring at me. And I was like "Awww!" THEN IT TURNED INTO URSULA and then I was like "Ewww!" and then all of a sudden the background changed into the middle of the ocean on a boat and Ursula was shooting lasers out of her eyes and I was scared. And then guess who saved me? No, not Eric. No, not another Ursula, no not Ariel! Not even Captain Jack Sparrow! But it was the bunny! The exact same looking bunny that was staring at me before except with a helmet on, wielding a sword and shield! It eventually struck down Ursula-

"Max, no one really cares about your dream. Just stick with the story and get to my part! And YES offense!"

"Alright, Madame Eugene! Gosh darn _just stick with the story meh meh meh…_" I mumbled.

Sorry.

* * *

The night was a quiet night. Thankfully, no Heartless or other problems to spot during that time period. We picked up some wood in the forest to bring back and managed to make a campfire for the night. The fire slowly went out as we slept and the sky gradually became brighter.

We were sleeping against a tree with some bushes and other plants behind it and I was the first to wake up. I opened my eyes to the sunlight, which came down on all the plants below, making a nice, glowing atmosphere to the forest around. There was a faint rustling sound behind me where the bushes were. I looked behind me, but saw nothing. I looked to my right, where Belle was and saw a gray nose pop out behind her head.

"What…?" I said quietly.

The gray nose inhaled and strands of Belle's hair moved. It was a familiar nose that I've seen before. It wasn't a human's nose.. _Oh._

"Maximus!" I whispered.

At the sound of my voice, Maximus looked towards me (though only his nose was visible) and snorted.

I believed that Maximus was curious about Belle, and that he was trying to make sense of her, with his own sense. I don't know about you, but I didn't do anything about Maximus sniffing her hair and all. I only stared with my eyebrows furrowed, and my mouth a little open.

I heard Jiminy yawn, who was sleeping between Belle and I. But my eyes were still on Maximus (technically Belle).

"Morning." Jiminy stretched.

From my peripheral vision, I saw Jiminy look to where I was looking. "Umm…" He was confused at the sight of Maximus' nose interacting with Belle. "Should we do something?" He looked to me.

I looked at him back, and after a pause of thinking, I shook my head. I opened my palm to Jiminy, to lift him up to the top of my head.

Belle started to wake up before our eyes and Maximus stopped what he was doing and backed up a little, but started sniffing her hair again.

We both saw that Belle was still unconscious of what was going on.

"Um, princess?" Jiminy asked.

"Hm?" Belle said softly, rubbing her eyes.

"Did you happen to wash your hair?"

"Really?" I eyed Jiminy. "Do you always ask that to people? I mean, my hair smells good but I didn't wash it."

"You didn't?" Jiminy looked down to my face.

"Actually, I did."

Our little conversation ended when we heard a giggle. We both turned to Belle who looked ticklish.

"Huh?" Jiminy gave a questioning look.

Belle jumped back towards me and stopped giggling at the sight of a horse nose. Maximus jumped out of the bushes and looked to Belle and I.

The white horse approached Belle and examined her face. Belle still had a surprised look on her face.

"Hey Maximus!" I jumped to my feet and pet him.

"You know him?" Belle stood up.

"Yeah. He's a royal horse that grew to be a friend of…my friends that I became friends with; And soon, my friend." I _kind_ of knew what I was saying.

Maximus grinned at Belle, and took a few steps towards her. He gave her a little nudge, and Belle offered her hand to Maximus' face. Maximus already seemed attached to Belle.

"But anyway, he's a really nice horse. Outside and inside." I continued. "Until he has a sword in his mouth."

Belle and Maximus stopped and froze for a moment, with their eyes wide.

"Anyway, how come you're alone?" I asked Maximus. "Aren't you supposed to be back at the castle with Rapunzel or Flynn- Eugene?"

Maximus stopped and thought, and gestured for us to follow him.

"Alrighty then!" Jiminy said. "Lead the way!"

* * *

From there on out, we've been walking and walking and walking. It probably wasn't a very long trip in real time, but since everyone was quiet, it seemed almost like an eternity. Belle was just enjoying the view, Maximus was leading in front, and Jiminy, who was now on my shoulder, was also looking around the trees and such. I was behind Belle, making me at the very back. I didn't really think of anything, like the others probably were, but I did have an idea of where Maximus was taking us. It was either back to the kingdom, or back to Rapunzel's tower, in which something happened to Rapunzel and Flynn that they had to flee back to the tower for some shelter. But in the distance, I saw civilization, and different colors peeking through the leaves of the trees. So we were going back to the kingdom.

Maximus stopped on concrete ahead of us, and then looked back, gesturing for us to come. Belle and I followed, and I was right. We were heading towards the kingdom, and we now stand on the entrance to the bridge to the kingdom.

"Belle," Jiminy said. "Welcome to the Kingdom of Corona."

I saw Belle smile at the sight of the kingdom. It had a more powerful approach to her since it was up close. At the end of the bridge, or the official entrance to the kingdom, were royal guards lined up, blocking the way; but the bridge was all clear.

"Well anyway," Jiminy said. "I think it'd be better if I stay out of the way. Be careful." And with a nod of my head, and a poof, he disappeared.

"Alright then," I said. "Let's go!"

I went in front of Maximus and lead on. After a few minutes, we were near the entrance. I glanced to the kingdom, and I didn't really see anything different. Everything should be fine here, then. But something still felt weird…

I ran to the guards anyway.

"Wait!" Belle saw me hurry towards the guards, and I heard Maximus whinny in an alerted tone as well.

Yeah, I was kind of rash, but I figured they already saw us from afar, so what's the difference?

"Hello, guards one, two, three, four-"

"Don't move!" Suddenly, all six guards pointed their swords towards me.

I put my hands up. "Whoa." I frowned at them. "You're not very nice."

It's just a guess, but I'm pretty sure Belle breathed a heavy sigh behind me.

"Um, excuse us for our intrusion," Belle, along with Maximus, stepped to my left. "but we're just passing through, looking for some…."

Belle looked at me with a sense of confusion. I shrugged.

"Food." She continued.

"Wait," Said one guard. "What's a royal horse doing outside of the kingdom?"

Before I was able to say something smart (at least in my mind), Belle took over.

"We found him." Belle suddenly said. "We, uh…" She bit her lip.

"Found him." I said. "Yeah, we found him. You have a problem with that?"

As expected, they looked at us like we were a (how do you say it) random guy at a store saying 'Hm, this watermelon looks good, better check it thoroughly' then he just slams his head into the watermelon, and then the people witnessing the whole thing is the guards' exact faces.

So after what seemed to be a very long pause I just punched the guy in the face.

Maximus obliged as well, ramming into them and such. It was cool. After, Maximus and I finished off these other guards, we heard another male voice. One of the guards was still alive- I mean knocked out.

One guard was pointing his sword at Belle, with a worried look.

"Stand back." He said. "I-I'm warning you!"

According to my deduction, Belle lost her interest and looked back at him. And then Belle suddenly stomped on his foot, which left him in pain. We were all watching him in awe; he was jumping around, and it really looked like it hurt, a lot.

According to my second deduction, Belle lost her patience and once she had a chance to, she stomped on his other foot, and not in that general, feminine way. She did it in an act of anger. Which is different, considering it's Belle. But it was also kind of understandable, since the guard said 'ow' like ninety seven times (or over a hundred) in one minute. Oh, she just tripped him.

Maximus and I stood with our mouths agape. The guard tripped, and then his head landed another knocked out guard's head. It was a hard fall.

Belle turned her head to us, and her expression was innocent. "So..uh," She tucked a deserted strand of hair behind her ear. "Shall we continue?"

"Yeah."

I wondered what other surprises awaited me.

* * *

A/N: **Minor edit to chapter 3 and 4 where Belle never visited other worlds.** Kind of, but not a filler chapter. It's like that one scene where nothing exciting happens, but it needs to happen. I thought the part where Max tells his story is kinda...useless, but think of this as a TV show and that scene is that one part that just makes everything funny in that moment.

But anyway, hope you guys are enjoying! I'm really excited for the next few chapters, so be excited for those too. There's going to be some action and such. It'll start in the next chapter, so yeah.

Reviews are appreciated!

And thank you for reading.


	5. Chapter 5: Keys

"So this is the village?"

Belle eyed everything around her. The different colors, vendors, workers, guards, children, everything. There was nothing out of place as it was before.

"Yup, this is it. Except…." I looked around. Something was different. I observed the guards, nope. I observed the shops, no. It was different, but it was the same. It may sound confusing, but if you were to see it here for yourself, you would say the exact same thing. Same colors, same buildings. Was it the slightly lighter shading of gold on the guards' chest plates? No. The ground was darker than usual? It's probably because I was looking at a shaded part of the ground. New born babies? That's just ridiculous. Were the guards different? That's just the same thing I observed before. But I assure you, _something_ was different.

"Except?" Belle questioned in a concerned voice.

"It's uh…" I replied after a moment of hesitation. "Never mind."

And then I had an epiphany. It wasn't the physical changes of the village, it was the atmosphere. The atmosphere was different. It was a kind of gloomy, sad, 'oh this stinks' atmosphere. Now that I look around, there was not one smile or laugh on one person's face. They all had sad, bulldog eyes. But it wasn't only the depression I feel. The village also had a sense of…danger, to it. I looked to Maximus, he was looking around, and he seemed to be keeping watch of something.

"Hey, Belle," I said.

She turned to me. "Hm?"

"Don't assume today is your first visit here in the village." As expected, Belle gave a confused face. "I'll tell you more about it later, but for some reason, I don't feel comfortable-"

"Grab the kids!" A familiar looking guard shouted out to his allies. Wait, isn't he the captain of the guards that once rode on Maximus? Yeah he was! He was pointed towards two children, a girl and the boy, who was running away. There was one guard who is handcuffed and kneeling near all the other guards. What I thought, was that the handcuffed guard had something to do with the escaping kids. But before I was able to ponder this more, my feet automatically went into a sprint.

"Wait here." I said to Belle and Maximus behind me and dashed off after the kids. And I guess, the group of four guards that went after them. I didn't really think this through.

"No, wait, Max!" I heard Belle behind me, and a frustrated whinny from Maximus.

I followed them through an alley. Ahead, I saw the kids switch their path and take a left turn, which I assumed was a shortcut. My feet stopped and I found another pathway to my left. I decided to head that way.

I stepped out into the open street again, looked to the right and saw the kids and the guards running towards me. The children were dodging the citizens of the village, since they were smaller, and the guards were pushing them aside. The roaming villagers all around are considered a moving obstacle for the guards, letting the kids through. I wanted to stop the guards, so I stretched out my arm and opened my hand.

"Stop!"

And they all ran right past me. It_ was_ a wide street anyway….

I looked behind me and saw one of the kids (the boy) trip. Before the guards were able to take hold of them, Maximus suddenly appeared in front of the guards and gave a menacing look. Belle arrived shortly after. I walked towards them and stood by Maximus. The kids were still in awe, watching us, along with some other villagers, stopping to see what was happening.

"Step aside, villager." One guard in front said. I assumed he was the leader of this group.

"_You_ step aside…guard."

I'm not very good at quick and witty comebacks.

Belle sighed. "We don't want any trouble. Just please leave them alone." She gestured to the kids.

"Stay out of our business." The same guard said. "They stole from the market. You expect us to just stand around?"

"Yes." I replied, keeping a straight face.

I noticed something odd. In the guards' eyes, there's something there. They all had natural eye color, but there was something different. It was like a blank stare. There was absolutely no soul inside their eyes, at least from what I saw. I can't really explain it, but that's how I saw it.

"Get out of the way!" A guard behind the leader pushed him aside.

I looked at him with a blank face, and then glanced to Maximus and Belle, then back at him. I squinted at him. "You're _rude._"

"That's it!" The guard attacked us, and all the others joined in.

Thankfully, Maximus stopped it all quickly. He reared in front of Belle and I, and two of them got hit by Maximus' hooves. I gladly assisted by punching one other guard in the face. They were all still conscious though, but they soon left once Maximus glared at them, eye to eye. They were probably going to tell the others about us, but at the moment, none of us cared. And the villagers didn't seem to care anymore, as they continued their tasks.

"Well, we got out of that safely." Belle said.

I nodded, and then remembered something. "Oh! Hey, Maximus,"

He looked at me.

"Did you notice that something was wrong?"

He gave a thoughtful look, then nodded.

"Why? What's wrong?" Belle asked us.

"Before, the kingdom was full of energy and stuff. Like," I looked around for a second, and then faced Belle again. "Don't you think that there's barely any life here?"

Belle stopped and observed the village. "I'm not exactly sure, since I don't know how it's supposed to be, but I know what you mean."

I faced Maximus once more. "Something happened, right?"

It was a useless question. Of course something happened. "Do you know _what_ happened?" I continued.

The white stallion shook his head and a sad look covered his face.

"Hm…" Belle crossed her arms. Suddenly, her face beamed. "Maybe the children know!"

At the sound of Belle's idea, we all simultaneously turned our heads behind us (or to our right, in Maximus' place) but there was no one there.

"I just saw them right there before at the corner of my eye…" Belle examined around.

"Well," I stood with a firm face. "Where'd they go, _Maximus?_"

Maximus snorted and gave a dark look at me.

"What? You think I'm at fault? Horses have better eyesight than humans!"

He gave a scornful look.

"I think. Hey, Belle, don't horses have better-"

"Over there, Max!" Belle pointed in the distance. They must have noticed us just messing around and having a conversation and found the chance to run off. Sneaky, sneaky….

I dashed off towards them and I was _very _fast. I felt like Usain Bolt! Compared to children, but it still felt cool at the time (not really now…). I over took the kids and jumped right in front of the now frightened children.

"Wait! Where are you two going?" I tried to block every time they try to flinch and run, and it absolutely worked. "Don't worry! I'm not one of those people with...creepy faces."

They both had the same color hair and eyes; dark brown. The boy who was hiding behind his older sister (to my knowledge) stood there almost shaking. I then noticed they must be poor, their clothes weren't very...well, elegant. The girl, who looked at least twelve years old, stared directly into my eyes. Although she wasn't shaking like her brother, who looked like maybe seven years old, she still seemed to have a bit of fear. I blinked, still in the same 'Gotcha!' position.

I groaned and straightened my back. "Oh, come on!" They didn't move. "Stop staring at me like that! I know my eyes are green and- wait Rapunzel's eyes are green! Do I really look like a monster to you?"

She nodded.

"Max, stop scaring them." Belle and Maximus were watching me this whole time. Belle kneeled down on both of her knees in front of the kids.

"Don't worry, that's just how he is." Belle said calmly while ignoring my _calmly_ muttered complaints and I massaged my forehead in frustration as well. "Now, what are your names?"

"Ruth." The girl whispered, and after a moment of silence, she looked to her brother (who I assumed _was_ her brother) then gave him a little nudge. "Shawn." He quickly said.

"Nice to meet you! My name is Belle, he's Max, and he's Maximus." Belle gestured to us with a (natural) smile, while I gave a (forced) smile as well. Maximus grinned. "Can we please see what's in your bag?"

Ruth's eyes quickly moved to the bag she held for a second, and then looked back to Belle, still with a sense of discomfort.

"Don't worry, we won't do anything bad. We just want to know what you needed." Belle continued with a soft voice.

While the boy- Shawn was still looking at the confused Maximus in awe, the little girl- Ruth opened her bag and held it out slightly. The first thing I saw was bread.

My hand dropped from my forehead, and I kneeled down beside Belle. "All this for a loaf of bread?" I gently opened the bag more and saw two apples. That was it. I was right, they were poor, or if they weren't, then it must've involved whatever happened in this kingdom.

Belle had a concerned face for them, and Maximus was occupied with Shawn.

"_Hey Max, remember to ask them about the kingdom."_ Jiminy's voice reminded me.

"Oh, right. Hey, I have a question." They focused their attention to me. "Did anything strange happen in the kingdom? Something out of the ordinary?"

The two both gave a thoughtful look, and then both nodded.

"What kind of things?" Belle asked.

"Terrence told us not to tell _anyone_!" Shawn's mouth was hastily covered by his sister's hand.

"Terrence?" I said with a curious expression. "Who's Terrence?"

"Our brother-" He had the chance to say the moment Ruth's hand left his mouth, but she clasped his mouth once again.

Belle, Maximus and I exchanged looks. We all knew that they were the key to discover what was happening around here. At least in this world. Belle continued the investigation. "Can you take us to your brother?"

Ruth glared at her brother, who nodded at our question. "What? They don't look like bad guys! If they're not bad guys, then they're good guys!"

Belle smiled at his act. Ruth seemed like she gave in, and sighed. It's like they're already comfortable with us. Or….Belle, for that matter.

"Alright then. But you guys have to promise to keep our hideaway a secret!" Ruth said.

"No worries." Belle answered back.

I stood up and smiled. "Yup."

* * *

We hurried to where their homes slash secret hideout was, since there were guards all around. I also bet that they're actively looking for us, after our little stunt back there. But luckily, Maximus was still a royal horse, and I doubt that they would be focusing on a white horse rather than people that actually had importance. So, we just hid behind Maximus whenever a guard looks in our direction, and Maximus would just give them a goofy wide grin. Maximus was also kind of a famous guard horse, or whatever they call it, so if they wonder what a horse with no rider is doing on the streets by himself, they'd notice it's Maximus. And Maximus is…well, a special horse that could spectacular things and he can manage on his own. Plus, he's also known for beating up people. Criminals, to be exact (and ignorant guards who had no knowledge of how dangerous Maximus really is).

We made it to their 'hideout' which was located far away from the crowded village. It was a little, but decent house that seemed old, but also seemed very strong and new. Basically medium old. It was kind of isolated and it's also located near the waters.

The kids increased their speed and arrived at the front door before us. They continued to knock on the door to no response, even after about two minutes or one minute and ten seconds I don't know I'm not a clock.

I turned my head to Maximus with a straight face. "Hey, how you doing?" Maximus then gave a 'meh' face. "Cool."

The door opened and a tall, brown haired man who looked like he was in his early twenties stood in the entrance way. He noticed us, but the sight of his siblings took his eyes away from us (obviously). "Ah! There you are!" He hugged them both and notices the bag full of groceries (?). "What's this?"

"_Shawn_," Ruth scowled at him for a second. "Ran off and stole some food. I followed after him, a guard helped us get the food, then other guards chased us, and long story short, they saved us." She pointed to us, in which Belle and Maximus returned a smile.

And I responded with a: "Sup." I'm a gentleman like that.

"_So that's what the handcuffed guard did. He helped the kids and he got punished for a good deed." _Jiminy said to me. I nodded slightly.

"Well, thank you so mu-" He gasped at the sight of Maximus. "What's a royal horse doing here?"

"He's not a royal horse. He's just pretending to be one." Belle abruptly stopped me from answering him, and from _her_ answer, I looked at Belle with a 'what' face.

"Oh." He whispered. "Well, come in! Come in! But please, the horse must stay outside."

Belle patted the concerned Maximus and smiled. "It'll only be for a little while."

"Besides," I continued. "You'll have peace and quiet to yourself and no one to bother you. Which is like heaven to all day and all night computer users."

"Computer users?"

"So let's go." I ignored Belle's question and Maximus' confused face. But you guys out there understand me, right?

Belle and I both stepped into their house, which was actually very nice for a medium old house. Which is basically normal.

"This is where you all live?" Belle looked around the house. It was small, yes. But it seemed very comfortable.

"Oh yes." Replied Terrence. "It's not much, but uh, it's still home."

"Yeah." I said examining a vase. "It's like what your father said every day in your childhood, Belle. Home will be where the heart is."

"How did you know?" Belle was very shocked, considering that she never met me in her childhood. "Those were the exact words he said."

"Oh.." Whoops. "Lucky guess. I just put random words together. Heh…." Belle still looked at me with a partially shocked face. It's not my fault you sang a somewhat catchy song, Belle.

"Where are my manners?" Terrence suddenly said. "I assume you've already met Shawn and Ruth."

Belle nodded.

"I'm their older brother-"

"Terrence." Belle and I said at the same time.

He looked to his younger brother, who was eating an apple, and then looked back to us. "And you? Your names, I mean."

"I'm Max." I gestured to Belle. "And this is Belle."

"Pleasure to meet you." Belle said.

"Likewise." He did a slight bow. "Well, thank you for helping my brother and sister. If you're in need of anything, I'll gladly help. It's the least I can do."

"Then you can repay us with answers." I suddenly said.

"Of course." He took a seat at their empty wooden table, except for the bag with the loaf of bread still inside. "Please, sit down."

"We're going to play with Maximus!" Shawn suddenly said, with Ruth beside him.

Terrence gave a blank stare.

"The horse outside." Belle answered his unspoken question.

No, the computer/internet user!

"Oh, okay. Just don't run off again." He told the kids who nodded as they opened the door to do whatever to Maximus.

Belle and I sat next to each other, facing Terrence.

"Now, what are your questions?"

"Well," I rested my head on my hand. "The kingdom seemed different. _Very_ different."

"How?"

"Well, according to Max, it has a dark atmosphere, almost." Belle answered. "But I can sense it too. Um, do you read any books?"

I sighed.

"Hm, only a few. I've read the Sword in the Stone though. That's a notable book for me. Very good book." He replied.

"I read that too!" Belle said ecstatically.

I sighed. _What haven't you read?_

"It's an amazing book!" Belle continued. "I read it with Adam- a friend for the second time! It was even better."

I sighed.

Terrence laughed. "I just felt like I was _in_ their world! It was an amazing read."

"Have you read-"

"Ahem." I said loud and clear. "Perhaps we can start a book club later, _Belle._"

She calmed down and sat up innocently. Terrence did the same when I looked to him the same way.

"Putting that aside," Terrence continued. "I do know this _atmosphere_ you speak of."

My eyes lit up. No not literally.

"It all changed after a new ruler replaced the old rulers."

"The beloved king and queen…" I said quietly.

"Wait, your brother and sister admitted that they did see something strange happen, and that you told them not to speak of it." Belle added. "What was that?"

"We're not sure…it's very mysterious, and out of the blue." He leaned in and whispered. "But it was interesting. It was on my off days from being a royal guard. There was a green flash in the clouds above, and suddenly everything became dark. We didn't see the whole thing, but I don't think we wanted to."

"Why are we whispering-"

"You're a royal guard?" Belle interrupted me.

"Yes. But I took a…_temporary_ leave from it." He explained. "I could sense danger in the kingdom, let alone the castle. If I was to stay, and something happens to me, the kids would be alone. I'm their only safe house for now. See, our parents are gone…"

"That's horrible." Belle said.

"Yes, but we still have our fun times. Though it's harder nowadays." Terrence looked down slightly in depression.

"Stop making me sad." I said. "And yourself. Let's turn our conversation to the light. Now, you said a new ruler replaced the king and queen. Who is that?"

"No one knows except the guards who personally attend to him, or her. It's a secret. They wouldn't tell us, and if you do ask, it can be punishable for death."

"Is the new ruler really that ugly-"

"Whoever it is, the new ruler must leave." Belle said.

"Yes, but how?" Terrence asked.

There was a moment of silence for us to ponder and gather our thoughts. So, new/ugly ruler, green flash, darkness, clouds...

"_Rapunzel!"_ Jiminy suddenly echoed in my ear.

"Rapunzel! Where's the princess?" I thanked Jiminy inside my mind.

"Princess Rapunzel?" His eyes widened. "I do not know. There hasn't been any news about her. _Or_ the prince."

"But she's not ugly-"

"Wait….just to rewind a little bit." Belle interrupted again. "You said you're a royal guard, right?"

"Yes." Terrence answered softly.

"Inside the castle?" Belle continued to ask.

"Yes. I was one of the personal guards to the king and queen." He raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Then that's even better! Do you know any secret passages leading out and into the castle?" Belle asked.

"You should!" I caught on to what Belle was thinking. "You know, for like emergency purposes!"

"Actually…." Terrence gave a slight smile. "I do. There are secret passages in case there's an invasion of the castle and reinforcements need to ambush them or the royal family needs to get out of the castle."

"Then you can repay us right now…again by giving us a place to stay for the night and leading us to the secret passages!" I stood up in excitement and saw Belle's expression of denial for my tone of selfishness.

"Please. We would greatly appreciate it!" Belle said to him.

He gave a chuckle. "Of course. You saved my brother and sister, and they mean the world to me. It's only best if I do the same to you. But I warn you," Terrence's expression turned into a serious one. "It's very dangerous. Who knows what lies in there? Are you sure you're up for it?"

I looked to Belle for a 'SURE YEAH LET'S DO THIS! ADVENTURE!' with a wide grin on my face.

"Yes."

"YEAH. Let's do this!" I glanced to the window, where I saw that it was getting dark out. "You know, we should sleep early, and get a head start on this plan in the morning, when everyone is still tired and unfocused."

"That sounds like a good idea, Max." Belle yawned. "And I am a little tired after all the thinking and running today."

"It would be better if you all gather and think up of what you plan to do once you get _inside_ the castle before you head on." Terrence stated. "Make up another strategy to get to your goal as quickly as possible, before anything bad happens."

I nodded and stood up. "That's true. Well, let's continue this in the morning. I'm kind of beat...now if you excuse us, the princess has to sleep."

"Princess?" Terrence raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing, nothing. I never said princess what are you crazy you heard nothing." I sighed and looked out the window. Water.

We had to sleep early, since our plan was to…plan another plan in the morning before the _real_ plan. If you get me. We also needed to get a full amount of rest and refill our health bar to the top for what I believed would be an action packed day tomorrow. Or not. I can't predict the future.

I agreed to sleep on the couch, and it was actually comfy. I liked it, and there was no one around except the furniture staring at me. But it took me a little while to fall asleep, because though we had some kind of breakthrough, all I could think of is….'why?'

* * *

A/N: There you go. A nice, long chapter. Really long. The next one, I predict, will be also long. I predict. Not entirely sure, since I thought this chapter would be shorter than it came out to be.

And yes, Max knows who Usain Bolt is since he _is_ just a normal person…really. But anyway, reviews are appreciated, and it helps me know what you think of it. And thank you to the two who reviewed my story. I'm glad that you're enjoying it. :)

Thanks for reading and until next chapter! (be excited)


	6. Chapter 6: Morning (Planning?) And Bye

I woke up that morning to what I assumed was clanking silverware in the kitchen and a blurred smell of tea. I looked at the grandfather clock, near the dining table. It read 6:00. Or 6:01, somewhere around that. I then sat up, rubbed my eyes and stood up, still tired. My eyelids were also still heavy, and that caused me to almost drift into sleep again while standing up. Like a horse.

"You okay, Max?" Jiminy appeared on my left shoulder.

"Yeah…" I yawned while picking up my brown vest I took off the night before and put my arms through each open sleeve hole. I also put on my boots before rubbing my eyes once again. "Just tired, I guess."

I wasn't lying. I was still tired. I didn't know exactly why though. I mean, I had quite a good quantity of hours I had slept. But I guess it was just that thing, where you sleep too many hours and still have that feeling of staying in bed.

Er- on a couch.

I yawned once more and took a step towards the kitchen, which was just nearby, connected with an archway.

"Well," Jiminy said. "You should eat a good breakfast. You have a long day ahead of you."

"Yeah." I replied and jumped a little to get the blood flowing. I then stretched from side to side. "No worries!"

I continued to the kitchen after my brief "exercise" session.

Heh, exercise.

I took slow steps inside, and saw the familiar blue dress, white apron and blue ribbon. Belle was brewing tea, and she was certainly concentrated in it.

"Morning." I said as I walked to her side.

"Mornin' Belle!" Jiminy said with a smile and a tip of the hat.

Belle faced us. "Oh, good morning Max! Jiminy, nice to see you too." She gave a warm smile and presented to me a teacup filled with tea. It had a kind of flowery aroma. "Here."

"Thanks." I took a sip of the tea, and from the corner of my eye, I saw Belle's eyes staring at me. "Hm….good!"

Belle gave an approving nod and continued to fill other cups with tea as I gestured to Jiminy if he wanted some tea, which he rejected. I looked around the kitchen and peeked outside, into the living room. It was still empty and quiet, until I heard wood creaking coming from the stairs. Jiminy then disappeared into thin air after hearing the noise. We decided before when we were in the forest, that it would be best if Jiminy isn't spotted by any enemies or normal citizens.

"Good morning." Ruth had halted at the entranceway of the kitchen, possibly at the sight of us instead of her older brother.

"Good morning." Belle replied and I acknowledged her greeting with a smile.

Her younger brother, however, dragged his feet behind her while rubbing his eyes. They were both in striped pajamas. He finally looked up after staying still in place with his eyes closed for maybe a minute and our eyes met.

"Hi." I said abruptly.

After a brief moment, he replied with a lazy "Hi."

"Come get your tea." Belle calmly said as she handed a cup to Ruth, who then gave it to her brother.

"Thank you." Ruth took another cup for herself and the two both walked over to the dining table. I could see that they were still tired from their ponderous footsteps. Ruth was more subtle than Shawn, but it was still apparent.

I took another sip of tea before turning to Belle. "Where's Terrence? Still sleeping?"

"He's outside. He woke before I did." She told me. "He gave me permission to brew this tea."

"What's he doing outside? Did he even have any breakfast? Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, you know." I stopped and looked at the teacup I held. "Well, tea is important too."

Belle smiled. "He could be preparing something for us, or he could just be enjoying the view."

I was confused. "View?"

"Step outside and you'll understand. Maximus is lucky to be able to wake up in the scene."

I looked at the door and then took a final swallow of my tea. "Thanks."

I walked towards the door and noticed the kids still a little dazed. I proceeded to open the door and went outside. The first thing I saw was Maximus just chilling on the grass. I walked over to his side and crouched. "Had a good night?" He shrugged and looked to his right, towards the sea. I paused and mimicked him. I saw the view Belle was talking about, and in amazement, I stood up.

It was a great scene. Since we were at the coast of the kingdom, the ocean accompanied the sunrise. It's basically a beach scene in a movie. The skies were faded red, and it was still a little dim. But in a couple of minutes, it'll just be the sun in the sky. In short, it was beautiful. And I wished you guys out there were here to see it.

"Max!" I looked behind me and saw Terrence near the house wave to me.

I walked towards him, Maximus accompanying me. Belle then appeared, and closed the door behind her.

"So, ready?"

Belle, Maximus and I exchanged looks and we all nodded enthusiastically. We were then interrupted by a "Wait!". Ruth and Shawn opened and closed the door.

"You guys aren't going yet, right?" Ruth along with her younger brother walked over to our little huddle.

"No." I said. "Not yet. We were going to draw little figures representing us in the ground first."

"Good!" Apparently, they're already out of their little daze. "We wanted to say goodbye when you leave."

"That's sweet of you." Belle stated.

Terrence sighed. "Well, come on."

And so he led us to a little forest near the castle. Not really a forest, but it had trees.

"Hey, Max." Shawn walked up to my left side.

"What?"

"What are those silver thingys for?" He pointed to my gauntlets.

I looked to Belle, who was on my right side. She didn't give any particular look but we both knew that it should be classified. At least for the time being. Hopefully, after this whole thing is done, I'll be able to have some peace and quiet, and I could also show some magic to Ruth and Shawn. Their faces would be priceless.

"Oh, you know…" I took a glance at my gauntlets. "It's just fancy stuff."

"For what? Why do you need to be fancy?"

I chuckled sarcastically. "Oh, Shawn." I ruffled his hair. "You little booger."

He then gave me a 'are you serious I know you're hiding something' look.

I sighed. "These are for if someone wants to hurt my forearms. If they try to hurt me, they get hurt themselves." I grinned. "It's a self-defense thing."

"Ooh! I want one!" Shawn gave a wide grin. "Actually, I want two!"

I simply smiled at him.

"Alright then." Terrence went ahead towards a group of bushes and grass.

We all followed him behind and once we got closer, I saw a piece of wood appear once Terrence had brushed the pile of grass that covered it aside.

"This," Terrence opened the wooden door in the ground. "Is where the secret tunnel leading to the underground of the castle is."

I saw a ladder leading down into the fiery depths of more dirt.

"Cool!" Shawn exclaimed and Ruth just stared at it in awe. I bet they thought it was like some kind of a stealth mission. It was, actually.

"Like I said before, we use this in case we needed to evacuate the royal family." Terrence continued and gave me a piece of steel and a thick, long stick of wood, along with what looked like flint. I think. "Once you get down there, it's all dark, so watch your step. I managed to find these, and I used some steel from one of my armor guards. Use it once you're down there to light your path."

I was right.

"But anyway," He crossed his arms. "What are your plans once you get in?"

I looked to Belle and looked back at Terrence. "Uh…" I looked once again to Belle and Maximus, who had no response. Now that we think of it, what was our plan? "Okay, hold on."

I took the wood Terrence gave to me and drew a stick figure on the ground. "Since drawing more than one stick figure takes too long, I'll just draw one to represent all of us, so…"

Heh, stick figure. Stick.

I drew an arrow from the stick figure stopping at a castle I also drew. "This is us, and we're going to the castle, right?"

Maximus nodded.

"Wait, that's a castle?" Ruth stated. "That looks like a house."

"It's the same thing!" I stared at my combined square and triangle contraption and shook it off. "So anyway," I drew another stick figure with long hair.

"Are those swords going into his head?" Shawn said.

"It's the princess! You know, with the long hair." I drew another stick figure next to the beautifully represented Rapunzel, and I drew a satchel on that stick figure.

"Is that a shovel?" I heard Terrence's voice and when I looked up, Maximus was giving a look that told me that was not how Flynn looked like.

"It's a satchel!" I drew arrows from the stick figure that represented me to the stick figures of Flynn and Rapunzel. I also added wavy lines on top of the castle to symbolize the eeriness that lies in the castle. "And Belle is the only one that isn't criticizing me! But anyway, we're going to-"

"Why does the castle have stink lines?"

"Belle!" I looked up at her. "It's symbolism for how- never mind! In short, we're going to find the princess!" I scribbled all over my masterpiece in frustration.

At least Belle acknowledged it as a castle, though. Got to think on the bright side.

"How are you for sure that the princess will be there?" Terrence asked.

I stood up. "I don't."

"You know there's a possibility of risking your life for absolutely nothing, right?"

"I know." I gestured to Belle. "Not to mention her life too." After a moment of silence, I clapped my hands together. "But we can't just stand here! We need to find some answers and put an end to this. Right, Belle? I mean, if you're willing."

"Of course I am, Max." She gave a gentle smile and looked to Maximus, who nodded.

Terrence's glad expression halted once he laid eyes on Maximus. "Oh wait, your horse…"

At his words, we all looked to the wooden door, which was really only fitting for a human. It was obvious that Maximus would not be able to fit in there. Let alone climb down a ladder. A wooden ladder, to be exact.

I faced Maximus and crossed my arms in a pondering manner. "Hmm…hey! Since you're still a royal horse, you can just wait right outside the castle until we get out."

Maximus raised a questioning look, and then thought about it.

"Besides, I imagine ourselves running out of there, avoiding guards and maybe creepy magic." I continued. "So you'll be like our getaway horse! Like a robbery."

Maximus nodded and then posed in a way like he was showing off how fast he can take off and sprint. Or gallop.

"That sounds like a good idea." Belle agreed.

"Well," I looked to Terrence and the others. "I guess this is where we part. For now, at least."

"You've all been so much help to us!" Belle said. "We really wish the best for you."

Terrence smiled. "It's nothing. I mean, you assisted us by proceeding to get some answers, and hopefully finding the royal family."

Shawn groaned. "You mean we can't go with them?"

"Even if we did go with them, you wouldn't last one minute!" Ruth teased.

"You probably wouldn't last even ten seconds!" He stuck a tongue out at her sister.

"Now, now." Terrence interrupted their little scuffle. "Say goodbye to them. They've really helped you two out when you were in trouble."

"Thank you." Ruth said to us.

"Maybe when you guys get out, we could all have a sword fight!" Shawn noticed his older brother's scowl at him. "And thanks."

I grinned. "Maybe."

"I'll stay with Maximus until we reach our house." Terrence walked a distance away from us, along with his siblings and Maximus. "Good luck!"

"No worries!" I shouted at them. "Maximus, see you later!" The white horse whinnied in reply.

"Goodbye!" Belle waved to the group.

I sighed and looked at Belle. "Ready?"

"Ready."

I opened the door and let Belle go first. I made a final look behind me, and only bushes and plants stood. No sign of three humans and a horse in my line of vision. I gripped the wooden stick in my right hand, with the flint and iron in my left.

I hope there are no cockroaches down there.

* * *

A/N: Here's a chapter to get some stuff out of the way. Then the next one will really start it off, or continue it…or do nothing at all. Depending on the reader's opinion.

And remember, since this takes place after all the Disney movies, obviously there will be spoilers. Just a friendly reminder. I'll make an estimate that the next chapter will be a longer chapter than this one.

Thank you for reading! Another thank you for those who wait for the next chapter patiently!

And as always, reviews are appreciated, and constructive criticism helps as well.

Until next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7: Into the Castle!

I climbed down the ladder and closed the wooden door above me, still keeping hold of the three items Terrence gave to me. He was right. It's dark down here. Really dark. Not pitch black though, some light went through the wooden door's cracks. So thankfully, I was somewhat still able to watch my step. To my surprise as well, the ladder was still sturdy, despite its slight wobbling.

"Are you okay, Max?" I heard Belle's voice beneath me. She must've reached the ground already.

"Yup, I'm good." I finally reached the ground after a little panic attack upon stepping on what I thought was the ground but was actually another step. You get me, right? That feeling where you're not watching your step and you didn't expect another step on the stairs, or the opposite, and you feel like you're free falling for a millisecond and then it's done.

I sighed and took a brief moment to glance at the light above. I then continued to get the flint and I rubbed it against the iron, creating a spark. I did it once more and fire appeared. I relocated the fire unto the wooden stick, creating a torch. It illuminated our faces and a good radius of surrounding light.

"That's better." Belle said.

"Yeah." I looked around a bit. It wasn't anything incredibly special like buttons or humming sounds everywhere like in a spaceship. It was just a normal tunnel. I took a deep breath.

"Well, shall we continue?"

"After you, princess." I gestured to the dark pathway in front of us.

"Why, thank you." Belle did a slight curtsy and walked on in front of me.

That wasn't really necessary, since I held the torch to light the path in front of us. So I ended up just walking beside Belle instead of behind her like it would've been. If I didn't hold the torch.

We were walking at a fair pace. We didn't really hurry; we also didn't really take our time. So…a normal walk, I guess.

"Hey Max, what do you think we're going to find in the castle?" Jiminy appeared on my shoulder. "Oh, and hello once again, princess."

"Hello, Jiminy."

I rested my arm which was wielding the torch, and pulled it back more towards my body. "Hm. I'm not exactly sure _what_ we're going to find. But I know we're going to find _something._"

"Well, Gaston is back." Belle said. "That must mean something."

"You don't think all the villains are back, do you, Jiminy?" I looked at the cricket with a worried face.

"Huh…." Jiminy put a hand on his chin. "I hope not."

My eyes went back to the path in front. _Yeah…I hope not._

Some time passed by. Not too much time, but the silences made the moments seem longer, as opposed to reality. At once, our path ended at the sight of another ladder.

"This must be it." Said Belle.

"Well," I handed the torch over to Belle and put my foot on the first step. "No time to waste. Wait here for a bit."

I felt Belle's eyes watch me climb the wooden ladder.

"Watch your step." I heard Jiminy whisper to my left ear.

I continued and reached the top. It was another wooden door, manhole, square wooden thing. With a handle. I struggled to push the door open. I was kind of agitated inside. It finally opened and I grabbed the ledge to pull myself up. Luckily there were two lit torches mounted on the wall, near what was an entrance way on the other side of the room, so I was still able to see, despite the dimness. There were crates around me, and I assumed that these items were the ones barricading the wooden door. Terrence did say it was hidden. "Whoa."

"Max, is everything all right?" I heard Belle's voice.

"Uh, yeah." I grasped the ladder and took a few steps down. "Here, give me the torch."

Belle gave me the torch and she began to climb. I, on the other hand, held myself up on the ladder with one hand, and in my left hand was the torch. Heh, 'on the other hand'. To avoid causing the ladder to fall down by jumping with all my might and landing on the next step of the ladder where the only safety I have is my right hand to grab the ladder, I just tossed the torch up into the room where the crates were and hastily made my way up.

To find that one of the wooden crates caught on fire.

"Max! Hurry!" Jiminy shouted.

I quickly pulled myself up into the room, grabbed a nearby rag, and just started flapping the rag at the fire frantically, jumping around and everything. The fire went out (even the fire from the torch) before it got into a _hot_ mess. There were scorch marks on the wood around but I guessed that no one would see this. And if they do, we should hopefully be gone by then.

I looked over my shoulder and saw Belle calmly sitting on the ledge of the secret compartment tunnel evacuation hole thing.

"Were you watching the whole time?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Did I look like a monkey?"

"No. But you were very tenacious, if that helps." Belle stood up and gently closed the wooden door.

"Uh…" My eyes went to Jiminy with a confused look. He shrugged. Tenacious? I wasn't very a wide reader of sorts. "I…guess…? But anyway…" I shook it off.

I walked over to the secret evacuation door and pushed some crates over it, concealing the door. "Lazy guards wouldn't be able to spot it now."

Belle picked up the unlit torch, which was now just a piece of wood and handed it to me. "You should hide this as well."

I grabbed it and tossed it behind me without looking. "Done." I grinned.

"It's on the crate." Jiminy told me and I looked behind me. I continued to kick the boxes hard enough to make the torch fall.

"Done." I took steps towards the entranceway. "Shall we continue?"

Belle nodded and went on first.

It was a spiral staircase leading on for not long. There were lit torches on the walls, lighting up our path. The steps soon ended and we entered another room. It had a calm atmosphere and there were wooden tables and chairs to accompany them. It had candles all around and some hung from the ceiling, lighting up the whole room. From what I saw, it seemed like it was a tavern. We heard a voice from within and we halted, still at the entryway slash exit of the stairway. It was a male voice.

"I swear, if they keep bugging me around like this I'm going to teach them something myself…" The voice said.

I peeked around the corner and saw a royal guard pouring some drinks into several mugs and put them on a tray. He was grumbling to himself and headed on towards the open door. He continued to put the tray on his right hand and tapped on the door behind him to close it.

I rushed inside the tavern without announcing it and ran towards the slowly closing door. I reached out for the handle on the door and caught it in time, just before it shut. I looked towards Belle and pointed at the handle I'm holding, grinning.

"Look," I said. "I caught it. Reflexes."

"Nice job, Max." Jiminy patted my shoulder.

I took pride in myself and gave a boastful smile. "Heh, yeah." I heard the creak of the door slowly closing and I quickly grabbed it before it shut.

Belle rolled her eyes with a smile and took a step towards me. "Well, let's try not to waste any more time."

"She's right. We should probably hustle." Jiminy commented.

I agreed and opened the door to pave the way for Belle. She walked outside and I followed after. I closed the door gently, to prevent any noise to echo through the hall. Just a minor precaution.

This hallway had the same atmosphere as the tavern, along with the basement. Quiet, and unoccupied. Though, the walls were built with stone and gravel, as it seemed. There was a door waiting for us in the distance in front, and there was another door to the right.

"Where should we go?" Belle asked.

I thought medium and soft, darting my eyes back and forth from door to door. I walked towards the door to our right. "Well, since we're already here, let's take a quick look." I grabbed the handle and tugged. It was locked. I kept trying to open it. "Huh….well, I guess we can't go here then."

I was to walk to the other door but Belle stopped me. "Don't you think it's a little suspicious?"

"Hmm…" Jiminy put his thinking cap on, not that he has one but you know. "She's right, Max."

After a moment of thinking, Belle spoke. "Max, try opening the door to the tavern."

I hesitated a bit, but did what she asked. I grabbed the handle and tried opening the door. It was also locked, so I made the right decision to rush after the door and bump my side on a couple of tables.

I looked behind me and Belle opened the door we didn't approach, easily. "Why would the other doors be locked?" She whispered under her breath.

"There must be something on the other side that's important then…." Jiminy said. "Right?"

Belle closed the door and I approached the locked door leading to somewhere. I pressed my ear to the door, trying to listen for any sudden noises. "Seems like it, Jiminy. But whatever's on the other side doesn't seem to be full of people or anything." I pulled away from the door and stepped back. I glanced at my gauntlet. _Right. _I held out my left hand and thought of the first thing that popped to my mind that would break open this door in a clean way. The familiar gold stream rose from the gauntlet and formed into a yellow and red colored plasma cannon, and made its way into my hand.

"Stay back." I pointed the iconic plasma cannon Stitch had at the door's handle and pulled the trigger. A green blast shot out and melted a hole into the door. The blaster disappeared into gold dust as I commanded. I walked towards the door and the edge of the hole, shaking it about until it budged and swung open. I looked to Belle and grinned. "There we go."

"It worked! Finally." Jiminy exclaimed. Yeah, it did! Turns out it's still good.

As (kind of) expected, the expression on Belle's face was a look of astonishment and confusion, all at once. "Yeah, it's uh...it's a cannon thing from outer space and let's continue." I pushed the door wide open and it was another hallway, though not long, with another door at the end. "Come on." I jogged to the door and opened it. Thankfully, I didn't have to pull out the cannon again and worry Belle with its unknown features. I closed the door once again when Belle passed me.

"Max, look." Belle pointed to a double door. It was like the other doors…but with two together. "It seems a little out of place to me. As in, it stands out."

"Seems like it. Let's go look inside." Jiminy suggested.

Oh, by the way, we were in another hallway that looked the same and another door at the end, but we decided to go into this special magical double door, door.

"Here goes…" Belle took ahold of the handle and opened it easily. We were all a little surprised on how it wasn't locked. But aside from that, we both walked inside and I closed the door behind me.

There were jail cells all around and all seemed to be filled with people. This seemed to be the prison, or jail cell headquarters or whatever. I took a step forward and one person on my right in a cell looked shocked at the sight of me and Belle, who had closed the door behind us. Once his eyes met mine, Jiminy disappeared quickly to avoid any suspicion or dangerous curiosity of some kind.

"Hey…" The man muttered and stood up against the cell bars. "You're not a guard." I assumed he looked at our clothing and thought we weren't guards, which we aren't.

In moments, others started gazing at us and whispers were heard all around in the hallway. Belle and I both walked deeper into the room, noticing their expressions, which seemed hopeful. They all looked like common people. Normal people.

"Are you here to help us?" A young boy innocently asked us.

Belle and I were speechless, sometimes exchanging glances. I was expressionless outside, but my mind was stirring. I guessed that Belle was in the same situation as I, since she didn't speak out to someone, which would be what she usually does.

"Whoa whoa, wait." I interrupted the crowded muttering and whispering. "What happened? I mean, are you all criminals?"

"We're all innocent here!" Said one woman. "We're being held here against our will."

"Who did this to all of you?" Belle asked.

"The new ruler." Said another woman.

"But there are other villagers in the village." I said.

"That's probably because they got the message of not opposing the new ruler and the guards." A man to my left said. "All of us here talked a little bit and we found out we all did a minor 'crime' as they said."

"What kind of crime?" I questioned.

"I asked my friend who the new ruler was." The same man said.

"I bumped into the guard accidentally and my son got dragged into it." A woman commented.

"All I did was step on one of the guard's foot by mistake." Another man shouted from a different jail cell.

"That's horrible." Belle said.

I sighed. "Don't worry guys, we'll get you out of this eventually. But we need to find out where the princess is. Do any of you know where she is?"

"The princess? She and her prince must be up in the higher towers." One man said. "There should be a way over there." He pointed to his right, towards the unopened double door at the end.

The double door in which we went through creaked. Belle and I were startled at the noise.

"Go! Rescue the princess!" The same man said. "We'll try to stall."

Belle and I started jogging towards the end of the hallway. "Don't worry!" I shouted.

"Thank you!" Belle said to everyone.

I opened the door quickly and let Belle through first. I closed the doors behind me as fast I can and we went into what seemed to be an identical hallway to the first hallway to the jail cell. I felt my heart beat fast. _Why is sneaking around so hard?_

"We have to get to the towers quickly." I told Belle.

"Where do we go, though?"

I sighed. "I…I don't know. But…uh.." I looked around and outside the little window. "But wherever the princess is, it must be in the highest tower, don't you think?" Belle nodded in response.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" I saw a royal guard wielding a spear.

I grabbed Belle's hand and sprinted off the opposite way. I heard the guard yelling "Hey! They're over her!" And that made me run even faster, but at Belle's pace of course. After a little bit and dodging guards, we found ourselves outside in a wide open space. The sun was bright and shining up in the sky already.

"Over there!" Belle pointed to the one tall tower in the distance. "That must be where she is! Or…is it…?"

"We'll just head over there." I said. "We have company!"

We both ran off in the direction where the suspicious looking tower was. We both entered another hallway inside an extension of the castle and Belle found a dark storage closet looking room. We decided to go in there and hide. There was some boxes around and a broom in the corner. We both lined up against the wall, where the door would swing against. I heard footsteps pass by outside and silence afterwards.

"Are they gone?" Belle whispered.

I peeked through a crack in the door. "I think so. At least for the time being." I slowly opened the door and looked around. No one in sight. Not unless there was a huge scary looking ugly man just around the corner. "Come on. The coast is clear." I sneaked out first with Belle following and went back out again, in the courtyard. I passed another hallway without thinking but Belle had stopped me.

"Max, let's try over here." She whispered.

She opened the door and we both went in. I was looking around without much of a plan except me wishing there was an elevator up into the tower. We then walked up a stairway leading into a place full of guards.

A place full of guards, huh.

"Hm?" One of the guards in the distance pointed at us. "There they are!"

I hate this.

"Here we go again. Come on!" I grabbed Belle's hand again and we both ran outside, on top of the kingdom walls. The sun was still shining and annoying in my eyes. There were four guards with spears in an attack stance, blocking our way.

Pointy spears pointing at us which have a very good chance of being sharp.

And I summoned a pumpkin in my hands from my gauntlet.

When we were almost in their faces, I threw the heavy pumpkin at the guard's face and he got knocked out. I quickly summoned a frying pan and swung it into the remaining guards' faces. Because that's what you do. You hurt their faces. If you're going to throw a large fruit or swing a heavy cooking tool at someone, make sure you aim for their face.

That being said, we continued onwards to the pathway towards the isolated tower. Belle managed to push a table over behind me, block the doorway and buy some time for us. There was a weapons rack in the corner of this castle pillar full of spears and swords. I took a spear and hastily shoved it between the handles of the double door leading out of the pillar, making it sort of impossible to open it and leave to the outside. We then proceeded to follow the stone pathway towards the gray tower.

We're not wasting our time, are we? I mean, like they were never in the tower. I doubt it though. There were a bunch of guards up ahead. And they pretty much lined up against the sides. There were also some in front of the doorway leading to the top of the tower.

_Bring it on._

"You! Stop right there!" One guard shouted.

We did stop. But not for them.

"Max, what do we do?" Belle whispered to me.

I looked around a bit, thinking about what to do, all the while ignoring the guard's comments and questions. _What do I need, what do I need? A sword's not going to do it. Not a frying pan either. I need something that'll take them all out in a small matter of time…_

_I got it! _My left gauntlet released a yellow stream of gold, trimmed with a lighter yellow and into my hands were two net cannons from Lilo and Stitch. I outstretched both my arms and shot both as quickly as I could whilst walking moderately fast towards the tower. The guards whom I shot were pushed back and now on the ground, entangled in a net. Suddenly, nothing was shooting out anymore. There was still the two guarding the door, they both looked frightened. I'm guessing they hadn't seen one of these cannons before. They shouldn't have. I mean, this world is in-what- the medieval times, kind of? And frankly, these cannons were from outer space. What can I say? These cannons are useful.

I took a step towards them while the net cannons evaporated into gold dust and looked at both of them with a straight face. I glanced back at Belle, who had a slightly confused expression and my eyes went back to the two guards. "I don't think you want to know what else I have in mind."

At my words, they both looked at each other with an anxious face. One guard took out their handcuffs and locked his hands with the other guard's hand. They both proceeded to crouch in a little corner, right outside the door and shake a bit out of fright.

I walked towards them and put my hand out and raised an eyebrow at their bewildered expressions. The other guard then took out a key and gave it to me. "Thank you." I looked back and grinned at Belle, who apparently didn't have much to say at the moment. "Let's go."

I pranced over to the door and unlocked the door. We went inside and found stairs. Again. Belle closed the door behind us. "We should hurry before the rest of the guards arrive here." I nodded at her suggestion. We quickened our steps as we went up the spiral stairs. This castle likes spiral stairs.

We reached the top and I opened another locked wooden door.

"Max?"

"Rapunzel!"

* * *

A/N: So this didn't turn out to be the longest chapter, but _one_ of the longest chapters. Heh. Anyway, sorry for the lateness. Getting a little busy now, but I promise I'll still update. Just not every week.

Thank you for your patience and thank you for reading. Reviews are appreciated!

Until next chapter!


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